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http://www.chilesadvertisin… Do you want the SMG? You can make money from social media but that should NOT be the main motivator for you getting into this game. It’s about connecting and THEN pro…

http://www.chilesadvertisin… Do you want the SMG? You can make money from social media but that should NOT be the main motivator for you getting into this game. It’s about connecting and THEN pro…

Has your small business outgrown the garden, the front room or the garage? Do you find that the cramped space you are working in is closing in on you and that it cannot accommodate your growing needs?

As small businesses grow at amazing speeds, many small business owners are grappling with the dilemma of finding affordable business centers to operate from. A virtual office and a one-room space can provide a start-up, but they cannot help the business establish a professional business address. Only a commercial office in an up market location can do that.

This is where the current trend of leasing executive offices can help.

What is a leased commercial office?

Normally, business owners would rent a building or an office. They would then have to deal with a number of endless details like utilities, telephony, furniture, facilities and so on. On top of that, there would be a time gap between looking for the perfect office premises and finding a place that can be a good business address for your company. Then, there is the designing work and the décor to be taken care of.

By leasing an executive office, your business acquires an established commercial office in a good location in town. The office contains all the facilities you would normally require for running a business including office furniture, secretarial rooms, conference halls, telephony, facilities for high speed internet access and state of the art business equipment.

Some of the advantages of leasing a business address include:

In short, whether you want a business office address temporarily or for the long haul, renting a business center allows you to enjoy flexible leasing terms, superb work environment and most importantly, an impressive up-market business postal address.

These days one way to really get the word out about your small business is to have some kind of social media presence. Social networking platforms like Facebook or LinkedIn can help put a virtual ‘face’ to your company, its products, goals, etc. However, the micro-blogging service Twitter, which is a free service that allows you to post messages up to 140 characters, is really helping small business increase their online reach.
No matter how small your business, it is not only important to tap into all the various segments of your personal network, but to also belong to an online social network where others can find you. However, before you even sign up for a Twitter account it is essential that you have a social media strategy. Although it can be a great free way to advertise your services and be in touch with customers (existing and potential), you do have to put some effort into identifying your goals and the kind of online image you’d like to create.
Some Advantages to Twitter for Small Businesses:
Free, Simple to Use
One of the best things about Twitter is that it is free marketing. There is no cost to open the account. You can easily post updates or even links to news, upcoming events, new products, etc. as long as it does not go over the 140-character limit.
Spread the Word Quickly
Word can spread like wildfire on Twitter. If one person raves about your services/products then everyone in their social network will know about it and you can be well on your way to increasing the number of Twitter followers.
Building a Network
Twitter can also be a great place to network with those in your market or to potentially find partnerships with suppliers/manufacturers. Also, you can reach potentially reach those outside your local area, increasing the amount of customers you reach.
Detective Work
You can easily conduct a search to find out who on Twitter has been talking about your business or may be talking about products that you offer. You can then start following and post updates about your company. Further, you can also use Twitter to search for what others are saying about your competitors.
Instantaneous Updates
Unlike promotional flyers, brochures, or email newsletters, you can send Twitter updates frequently throughout the day or week. Some small businesses use it to send out promotions or alert customers to new products.
Some Twitter Tips:
• Spend some time following those in a similar market or those companies that have enjoyed huge Twitter success and observe how they use Twitter. These can be great case studies that you can also apply to your business.
• Do not overwhelm your followers with updates. Sending too many may be annoying, causing some not to follow you anymore. So do not send Twitter updates every hour. Aim for a couple a day or week.
• If someone follows you, make sure to return the favor and follow them back. This is good Twitter etiquette.
• Do not only post updates to advertise your business. You can also share things about your area, community, useful links, etc. Or use it to start conversations with others.
• If you have employees, have them sign up with business Twitter accounts, as they can offer different perspectives on your business. Plus, can save you the time of always being the sole Twitterer.

Whether you watch a TV show that is constantly reminding you to “Follow us on Twitter” or you’ve seen ad advertisement that asks you to “Become a Fan on Facebook,” you’ve probably realized that soc…

http://www.contacttom.com – Television Interview on the release of my new book, “The Complete Small Business Internet Guide”, published by Macmillan/QUE in 1998. Although it is out of print today,…

The business world has recently been inundated with the buzz about Twitter, a web-based social networking application assisting those who wish to keep in touch with customers, clients and friends.  Remarkably, it’s already allowed some entrepreneurs to double their clientele while efficiently enhancing their word of mouth marketing.  The following will provide a thumb-nail sketch of the most important steps and tips for effectively using Twitter.

Getting Started

I highly suggest making your username, your business name.  This will add a branding element in addition to Google ranking your Twitter account for your company searches, thus increases your prospects’ chances of finding you online.

For your profile image, use a picture of yourself so that followers can associate your image with the company name.  This is especially true if you as the owner are doing the tweeting.

When designing your profile background, use one of the templates provided by sites like Twitterbacks or FreeTwitterDesign.

Customize your account as much as possible by creating relevant a username, image and background to convey your brand.

Using Tweetdeck

After creating your account and customizing your profile, it’s vital to supplement your account with a management tool or application.  Tweetdeck is probably the most used site for this which allows you to update and use Twitter more efficiently.  Having thousands of followers necessitates the ability to filter the multitude of conversations.  For example, it can allow you to just see a handful of your friends’ tweets even though you may be following 5,000 people.

It also lets your search for a group of people based on keywords specific to a given business.  The possibilities are virtually endless with this capability when you consider a local business seeking to track a certain town or zip code.

Personality

So many businesses fail because their customers do not know, like, and trust them.  Today in 2009 it has never been easier for small business owners to integrate their personal touch with their product by using the internet and social media sites like Twitter.

The less personable you seem, the less likely consumers will believe you.  Consequently, you should also feel free to tweet non-business updates that allow your customers to acclimate themselves with your true character and interests.

Building Value

Don’t expect to have thousands of followers from week one.  Rather, focus on building true customer loyalty and satisfaction by what they take away from your updates.  Your goal is to garner a core group of fans who end up telling their friends about who you are and what you have to offer.

One example of this is by you giving free advice, tutorials or samples to consumers that need your product or service.  It strengthens your reputations and integrity if done with sincere honesty.  In the long run these customers will remember you when their need arises, thus equating to more sales and greater revenue.

Summary

Twitter offers businesses a new way to connect with consumers and build customer loyalty. It’s important to take the right steps to make your profile and workflow receptive to new customers. Properly fill out your profile, use a Twitter application like Tweetdeck, and create a strategy for your business to make the best use of this new social platform.

Owning a small business used to mean that you couldn’t afford an 800 number. Not so anymore. These days it is just as easy to get an 800 number for your small business as it is to have the electric turned on for your small business.
Having an 800 number is great way to attract new customers and entice more people to call you which will hopefully lead to an increase in sales and your bottom line. The best part is the 800 number you choose will not cost you an arm and a leg anymore.
With the invention of what is known as a virtual 800 number it is no longer necessary to have a main phone line that routes all the calls to various extensions throughout the office. In fact, you don’t even have to have all the extensions in the same office, city, state, or country for that matter. Here is how a virtual 800 number works and how you go about getting one for your small business:
•Choose a service provider: Start by conducting an online search for ‘virtual 800 number service provider’ and what you will get is a number of different companies who all offer similar services at similar prices. You need to take some time to go through the different companies and decide which one is the one you want to use for your 800 number needs.
•Choose a number: This is done with the 800 number service provider and can be done in one of two ways. You can let the 800 number service provider choose a random 800 number to assign you or for a few dollars more you can choose a vanity number such as 800-DOG-TOYS.
•Set up extensions: A virtual 800 number will act as your personal switchboard operator. When a customer calls in they will hear a recorded voice that prompts them to push a certain extension in order to reach the department or party of their choice. These extensions are set up ahead of time by you. You can designate any phone to be an extension and the person calling in is none the wiser. One extension can be your mobile phone, while another extension can be an office line. So long as it is a phone, an extension can be plugged into it. You can also switch the designation of the extensions as your needs and travels change.
•Check messages: If you do miss a call you will have a pre-recorded message play letting the person know that you will call them back as soon as possible. You can check your messages from any phone or have the 800 number service provider e-mail you the message, fax you the message, or even send it to your iPhone or other portable device.
Again, the company you will want to go with all depends on what types of services you will be requiring. Most 800 number service providers have a list of prices right up on their website’s and if they don’t you can generally call them and get an idea of what it will cost to make your small business feel like a big business by obtaining an 800 number of your own.

There are a lot of information and source guide with right to the small business resources and this is the small business administration. It is also referred as SBA. SBA can offer a person with a number of financial assistance options of programs which are especially for small business purpose. This includes section 7 of subsection A of 504 and this elaborates on disaster assistance loans.

What the Section says:

The section specifies that, there will be a review of the eligibility of requirements, and of the loan programs which are provided by the SBA. This also includes the provision of surety bonds, equity capital needs and such loan programs. There are also specifications of the lender programs which are explained to the person on the site.

Even if the SBA does not promise to offer the grants to help a person in order to start a business, there are such details which are on organizations and on sites which do assist the person to locate special purpose grants. One can view the free online course which is provided with right to the SBA loan guaranty programs.

Online assistance

To know more on the federal financing for small businesses, one can visit the site which can offer him with financial assistance. This includes the basics, grants, eligibility for loan, SBA loans, surety bonds and equity capital. There are also details on special loan purposes, loan programs, and contract openings for a person. One can get an idea on financing provision which is related to disaster assistance, online training, counseling, laws and compliance.

Small business guide to government and federal grants

One can get to know on federal financing for small businesses through infomercials, websites and reference guides which can provide him with promotion of availability of fund grants to entrepreneurs. This is offered to start and to expand the businesses. There is a bitter truth for the entrepreneurs though.

The federal government and the state governments, however, do not offer wide variety of low interest loans or such grants. But, they do offer the entrepreneurs with venture capital finance programs which can help them to start and to grow their business. In addition to this, there are some federal and state agencies that can provide a limited number of grants for a specialized business activity like for scientific research and development.

What the SBA can do?

The SBA can help a person with right to the federal financing for small businesses. They can assist the small business owners for starting and for expanding their business venture. They can also help the person to get loan through certain private banks and such financial institutions.

SBA is known to a largest single financial backer for the small businesses in US with a record of providing people with business loans, disaster loans and loan guarantees too. Such grants can be worth 45 billion dollars of fund for small business purpose. This way, one can benefit from the SBA with availability of low interest loan programs too for upcoming business and for its growth purpose.

A small business has the potential for growth and for this to happen, there is need for it to have a guide on the proposed strategies that it can put in place to sail through. An enterprise has very many issues affecting it, as well as others that if well considered could eventually become part of the bigger picture. What do I mean by saying so? Issues like going for government contracts are never in the minds of many small entrepreneurs, but if given a thought, it could become just another line of operation for the enterprise. When you search online for information, you will get thousands of pages giving you a guide to a lot of issues that an enterprise owner can engage in. A good business guide should provide you with sufficient information about how to start and plan a business. The guide in many cases does not give details on a step by step procedure on how to go about it, but the information therein should be enough to help you formulate your idea and plan for it in writing. The guide also gives information on how to market your enterprise, both online and otherwise. You also get to see what it is that other enterprises have done in marketing themselves in order to get to where they are. Other sections in the guide include information on how to ‘green’ your enterprise or to make it more consumer friendly, how to create favorable working conditions for your staff members, managing your finances as well as protecting the assets that belong to the enterprise. By the time you are through with looking at the guide, you will have acquired a lot of skill and knowledge on management, detecting and controlling fraud and controlling your taxes.